Harry Mertens
Eric/Harold/Henry "Harry" Mertens is a supporting character in the series. He's Allison Nuttels's father and the Nuttels kids' maternal grandfather. He gave up his physical form in order to reincarnate into Cobby. Despite only appearing in several episodes of the series, he has a large role in all of them. History Pre-series Harry's birth was unexpected, and also out of wedlock (since his father Daniel was already married to his elder sister Leticia's mother Miriam). He was conceived as a result of Daniel suddenly kissing Faith, being extremely happy he managed to reach her. The particles resulted from their kiss gathered into a little sphere, which in 2 week became a baby. As a child, he was interested by his origins to the point he would beg his mother's fellow Mirror Nymphs about how it is like to be basically a ghost in a mirror, if there were more creatures like them, etc. They either saw him as a pest or as a genuinely cute, if a tad annoying, kid. Harry spent most of his childhood inside the Mother Mirror alongside his parents until Daniel passed away when he was ten. On his deathbed, he pleaded Faith to send their son home to Miriam to spend the rest of his childhood. Despite Miriam considering he is just a "monstrosity" and a "chimera" and favoring her daughter over him, she tried her best to give him her motherly love. Harry met Leticia when he went home for the first time; Leticia wasn't happy with the news of her father's death and a new sibling she had never seen before, but attempted to get more information about her half-brother. Initially, she tried to profit from the situation she was in by using and harassing him for her personal gain, but as they grew up, she realized Harry really saw her as an actual friend. She grew more and more attached to him, always helping him when he needed her, and at the time he was in his late teens and she was already an adult, they were inseparable. But they had to get separated one day, and someone or something had to pay for this... During his college years, Harry grew even more fascinated by the supernatural: he was always reading books about strange, mythical or even plain impossible creatures, even if he had to pay attention to the surroundings (his mates saw him as an "air-headed genius"). He met Gertrude on the college hallway, after she accidentally bumped in him while he was carrying many, many books. They initially started as friends, but they started developing feelings for each other with time. They married after just a few weeks after graduating (they didn't even get engaged), and after two years, they had their first child Allison on the winter solstice. Tabitha came along two years later, on the spring equinox and Brian three years later, on the fall equinox. He was so love-blind that he forgot about Leticia and the fact she disappeared without a goodbye. Harry became after some time a demon hunter. He allowed Allison, Tabitha and Brian to join him and his team in their misadventures, so that he can teach them to be brave when there was a "monster under their bed". Gertrude was never really alright with the idea, since not only he would risk his life, but their children's too. Harry scoffed her criticism, always telling her they are safe because he knew what to do. Harry found out Lenny "tricked" Leticia into giving up her physical form when he was in his early fourties. Believing it wasn't too late to reach her, he summoned the cat demon and was suggested a deal: he had to reincarnate into "the third triplet in his daughter's third pregnancy" in order to get any chances to ever met her. Even though Gertrude pleaded him not to accept, he still shook hands with him in secret. Upon finding about Harry's secret, Gertrude spiraled into considering suicide. Luckily, college-aged Allison came just in time and stopped her from taking her life while her husband was gone in another trip. Concerned for her mother, she decided to let her stay in her apartament, so she wouldn't feel bad about the whole situation. She never told Harry about the suicide attempt and told him she moved in with their eldest daughter because she (Allison) "was feeling alone". At the age of 46, he remembered about Lenny's curse and told the CWWW they didn't had to worry and that he was positive the plan would work. When Allison became pregnant twice, Gertrude would panic, and would flee to whatever hospitals Reginald's and Martha's respective births took place alone, just to prevent Harry from dying. It was the deadline of Allison's third pregnancy, and Harry finally disclosed himself to the family. They were confused at first, but they didn't talk about it too much, thinking he had a spade in his sleeve (as he would always do in such moments). After the birth of the triplets, the family had watched them. Harry started feeling his inevitable death, but managed to see his grandchildren once. He looked at his last grandson, Cobby (who was also implied to be stillborn), for the first and last time, until he experienced the worst headache he could ever experience. The nurses tried bringing him him to another room, but to no avail, for his body discomposed into turquoise dust. After his death, his soul was transferred into a blank space of nothing. He met Gentilis for a short time, though he told him that he was now reborn, and even Leticia, who was trapped inside his "memories room". Harry starts to fade, and suddenly, all he could see was blurred surroundings - he was already newborn Cobby. During The Amazing World of Gumball Since childhood, Cobby experienced lucid dreams about his grandfather's life, and would become scared of sleeping alone (he sleeped with his parents because of this for a while, then they made the triplets a special bed when they grew older). Harry then made his dreams a little bit more friendly. Even if his power came with a lot of resposibility, he had admired Harry and wished to meet him once. By the time Cobby learned Harry become him only to see his sister, he starts feeling betrayed. During Caleb's Adventures in the Future Although not as important as in the original series, Harry plays an indirect role in the plot. He is also one of Cobby's alteregos. Appearance Harry is a tall and lean Cocker Spaniel. He has brown hair, and his hairstyle is similar to that of his granddaughters Martha and Caroline, and straight bangs. Unlike most of the characters, he has thick, dark brown eyebrows, enlarged turquoise pupils and small fangs. His attire consists of a white shirt underneath a dark beige sweater, gray trousers and black loafers. As an adult, he wears a pair of thin-framed, rectangular glasses, despite claims he had his sight "enhanced" due to his heritage. He also has/had quite of a resemblance to his daughter Allison and his grandchildren, especially Cobby. Personality Harry's personality is very similar to Cobby's. He is an intelligent person, who knows how to handle things. An optimist at heart, he believed everything has a good side to it, much to Leticia's initial chagrin; though he is much more optimistic than Cobby, Mabel and Darwin at one place, to the point he can be blinded by it and deny reality altogether. He is overprotective towards his family, but he isn't too strict and lets them do whatever they want, because he trusts them. He loves his family very much and is loyal to them, but he had loved his half-sister and soon-to-be-born grandson and will do anything, just to let them live, even if it costs his own life. He is also stubborn and somewhat of a perfectionist, and doesn't want anything "wrong" to happen within his life or someone to tell him something can't be done. Harry is charismatic and strong-willed and won't give up regardless of whatever situation he gets, as his beliefs about the supernatural and his constant willingness to prove almost everybody who has ever existed (no exaggeration) that it exists (he is right) were often addressed with factual proof. Harry was somewhat reckless in his "chronic hero syndrome" plan and can be considered even selfish for not thinking enough about the consequences of his ideas beforehand. His demeanor absolutely terrified Gertrude, who also worried about losing him in any of his demon-catching quest and was the first person who suggested him to refuse Lenny's deal. He had also had to lie to his loved ones in order to protect them. He had accepted Lenny's offer to bring his sister back in secret and never really told his family until Allison became pregnant for the third time (even though Gertrude did know about it and suspected something was off - he was acting strange whenever the subject of Leticia and Lenny was brought up). Powers and Abilities Being the only existing Mirror Nymph hybrid, Harry has a fair share of powers and weaknesses alike. *'Telekinesis' - His most notable ability. Harry can move objects with his mind, and even take control over more things simultaneously, unlike Cobby. *'Floating/Teleporting' - He can float several feet from the ground and teleport anywhere he wishes. *'Reading auras' - He is able to read people's auras and see more clearly how they feel as an aid for body language. *'Control over Gravity' - Harry is able to cancel out the entire earth gravity, but had only used it a few times. Since it would drain his whole vital energy, Cobby has vowed to use it only as a ultimately last rrsort in a dire situation. *'Transcendence' - Harry is able to "leave" Cobby's body and to transcend into intermediate universes, causing his grandson to experience a seizure-like state until his grandfather returns in his body. *'Immortality' - Had he never gave up his physical form, he would have still lived for a millenia at least. He is immune to several diseases, due to his enhanced immune system. *'Energy Blasts' - Harry can summon energy spheres out of his hands, which he uses to weaken his target and has a similar effect as pyrokinesis or electrokinesis. Cobby has yet to discover this power, but his eyes sparkle a bit whenever he is upset. *'Telepathy' - Harry is capable to read other people's minds without their knowledge. He believes the power is invasive and is the only ability he doesn't share with Cobby. Weaknesses *'Weak Impulse Control' - His most prominent weakness. He can lose control over his powers whenever he feels overwhelmed and would float/teleport randomly. *'Impossibility to become Intangible' - Harry has limitations as a hybrid, and cannot pass through objects or mirrors (without assistance) as Mirror Nymphs do. *'Possible Evil Origin?' - According to Lenny, Harry was supposed to be "an evil doombringer, so strong he could start the end of the world" and that his friendship with Leticia played an essential role in changing him for the better (although Harry has always been a respectful and kind child; this alludes to the fact not all villains had to be evil since childhood). It might be because Harry is seen as bringing "imbalance in nature". *'Slower Reflexes' - Since Mirror Nymphs don't need reflexes, Harry would run slower and would get exhaused rather easily if he hadn't eaten something beforehand. *'Weird Appetite and No Sense of Taste or Sense' - Self explanatory. *'Unique Blood Type' - This might seem as a cool power, but it actually has no pros (other than being aesthetically cool because it is turquoise and it glows). Harry cannot receive a blood transfusion from anybody regardless of their blood type, therefore he had to avoid getting seriously ill/hurt during his missions. Relationships Leticia Harry was Leticia's only friend as she grew up. She was incredibly attached to him and Cobby Cobby is the last grandchild Harry physically met. The moments that they spent were very short-lived but Harry has sworn to protect his grandson at all cost, even if he's not alive anymore. Their relationship indirectly started when Lenny suggested Harry to pass away when the "third triplet of your daughter's third pregnancy" (Cobby) was born in order to unite him with Leticia.The CWWW and Gertrude tried to convince him to decline the offer, in vain. Since Harry was aware by its strong powers, he has always loved the baby, no matter how painful was for Allison to bear it. Cobby has always admired Harry and wanted to become like him, putting him on a pedestal. After knowing about his grandfather's reason of death, Cobby starts blaming himself and has remorses about it, but Harry reminded him that he never did anything wrong in the first place, and told him that whenever he needs help, he is right there for him. Upon finding out Harry's real motives to sacrifice himself (to free his sister, not to save the world) and finding out he trusted Lenny and that he believes the Earth is flat, Cobby loses some of his respect he initially gave him. Despite Harry trying to calm his grandson down, he continued believing he actually didn't care as much as he thought about him and openly mocked him for their differences. Eventually, Cobby gets used to the idea of being half-Harry ("half of the biggest liar who's ever existed") and the two reconcile. Quotes Trivia *His last name, Mertens, is similar to Finn's last name from Adventure Time. **"Mertens" also sounds similar to "Martha". *He is the only Mirror Nymph/Dog hybrid to ever exist. *He is actually immortal; he can't die of old age or certain dieseases. This immortality is inflicted on Cobby as well, as he lives about 600 years before he and Harry merged into each other eventually. *He was a member of the CWWW. *Cobby knew all the time since his birth that Harry passed away and he used to blame himself entirely for this, until he came at terms with his decision. He still has some remorse for the fact he "never met his maternal grandfather". **This is the reason why Allison never told him in the first place because she could hurt his feelings.Despite this, Harry can communicate with Cobby, mostly in dreams. This may explain why Cobby is fully aware of the circumstances of his grandpa's passing without nobody to tell him about it. *Harry has saw Cobby for 5 minutes after birth, but Cobby never did. *Allison considered naming Cobby "Harrison" in his honor. *His voice actor, J.K. Simmons, is also the voice actor of Ford Pines from Gravity Falls. **Harry's personality resembles both Ford's (his "weirdness", passion for the supranatural, attachment to his sibling, "deal with the demon" scenario and intelligence) and Steven Universe's Rose Quartz (his selflessness, optimism, charisma and the fact he had to lie to his loved ones for a better life) *The date of his life until the end was February 16, 1952-November 27, 2000, written on his grave stone. *It is revealed Harry lived for a long time without a birth certificate. Miriam had to make him one (albeit under questionable legality and she also had to lie a little; she signed herself as if she were his biological mother) in order to get him into school. *Harry habitually spoke to himself as a young man. Category:Characters Category:Formely Deceased Characters Category:Deceased Characters Category:Characters that did not appear in the original series. Category:Male Category:Other Species Category:Hybrids Category:Dogs Category:Nuttels Family Category:Gumbaverse